DPWH: Pantabangan-Canili Bypass Road now 76.63% complete

Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) | FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines – After nine years, the 4.71-kilometer Pantabangan-Canili Bypass Road that links the provinces of Nueva Ecija and Aurora in Central Luzon is now 76.63 percent complete, the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) said Friday.

In a statement, the DPWH said the Pantabangan-Canili Bypass Road, which started construction in 2013, is aimed to be completed and opened by October of this year.

DPWH Region 3 Director Roseller Tolentino said the recently-started Phase VI had recorded a 6.5 percent accomplishment rate, making the entire 4.71-kilometer bypass road 76.63 percent complete.

According to the DPWH, Phase VI, which is already the last phase, will include the construction of Canili Bridge III, the finishing of other structures at Canili Bridge I and II, and the widening of a 3.29-kilometer section of the bypass road.

The last phase has been allocated P105.40 million by the national government under the 2021 General Appropriations Act.

Tolentino said the road construction initially started in five phases that were already completed in December 2021.

Once completed, travelers will no longer need to cross the one-way access road over the Canili-Diayo Dam and traffic will be diverted from the existing Canili-Alfonso Castañeda Road to the new bypass road, the DPWH said.

Aside from linking provinces, it will also provide travelers and tourists with easy access to the various tourist destinations in other parts of Luzon.

The construction of the bypass road is a project of DPWH Regional Office 3, with three planned bridges traversing the towns of Pantabangan in Nueva Ecija, Alfonso Castañeda in Nueva Vizcaya, and Canili in Aurora. – Nicole Faye Agcaoili , INQUIRER.net intern

/MUF/abc